Railroad-gate



Lb e e h S w e e h S 2 RU. Bw K A GG R, 0 CR .u LA .R E m m M o m No.457,043. Patented Aug.. 4, 1891.

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RAILROAD GATE.

No. 457,043. Patented-Aug. 4, 1891.

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EDl/VARD LINCOLN CROCKER, OF ORLINDA, TENNESSEE.

RAILROAD-GATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 457,048, dated August4, 1891. Application filed April 30, 1891. Serial No. 391,115. (No modelTo all whom t may concern,.-

Be 1t known that I, EDWARD LINCOLN CROCKER, a citizen of the UnitedStates, re-

siding at Orlinda, in the county of Robertson and State of Tennessee,have invented a new and useful Railroad-Gate, of which the tollowing isa specication.

The invention relates to improvements in railroad-gates.

The object of the present invention is to simplify and improve theconstruction of railroad-gates and to enable the same to be readilyopened by the weight of a train and to be quickly closed after a trainhas passed.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination andarrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, and'pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a railroad-gateconstructed in accordance with this invention, the gates being closed.Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view. Fig. 3 is a vert-icaltransverse sectional view on line a: x of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a similarView on line y y of Fig. 2.. Fig. 5 is a plan View, the platform beingremoved.

j Referring to the accompanying drawings, 1 designates a rectangularplatform having rails 2 secured to its upper face and forming a sectionof a track and supported slightly above the adjacent rails 3 by springsi and adapted to be depressed by the weight of a train to open slidinggates 5. The platform 1 has secured to its face a rectangular frameconsisting of side bars 6 and end bars 7, having their ends secured tothe ends of the bars 6 and provided intermediate their ends withrecesses 8, in which the springs 4 are centrally secured, and thesprings 4t are bowed or V-shaped and have their ends secured in recesses9 of cross-pieces 10, arranged beneath the platform. The springs et areadapted to hold the platform slightly above the adjacent rails 3, andthey shouldbe of considerable strength, and the platform 1 is preventedbeing' depressed below the adjacent rails by sills 11, secured to posts12, having their upper ends arranged in recesses of the platform.Depending from the platform are presser-feet 13, which are arranged toengage levers 14, having their inner ends curved upward and fulcrumed onpivots 15, extending from posts 16 to a bottom cross-piece 17 of thegate-frame, and the outer ends of the levers 14 are connected by rods 18with bellcrank levers 19, fulcrumed at their angles to posts 20 of thegate-frame and each having an arm 21 extending upward along the posts20, and the upper end of the arm 21 is connected by a rod 22 with ashifting-lever 23, which has its lower end fulcrumed on an arm 24 of theadjacentposts 20 and its upper end connected by arod 25 with theadjacent gate, whereby when the platform is depressed the bell-cranklever will be pulled upon and Will throw the shifting-lever 23 outwardand open the gate.

The gate frame consists of the vertical posts 20, the bottom cross-piece17, and a top cross-piece 26, secured to the upper ends of the posts,slightly bowed, and having centrally secured to it a depending hanger27, which centrally supports a guide-rod 281, arranged at the top of thegate-frame and having the gates sliding on it. Each gate eX- tendshalf-way across the track, and the distanco traveled by them in slidingis only onehalf the width of the track, thereby necessitating only acomparatively short platform to open them in time to permit the passageot a train, and the gates consist of vertical end bars 29 and horizontalrods 30, secured to the end bars and arranged in openings 31 of theposts of the gate-frame and adapted to slide freely in opening andclosing. After a train has passed, the gates are immediately closed bysprings 32, which are preferably spiral and have their upper endssecured to the posts 2O and their lower ends attached to the bell-cranklevers and arranged intermediate their ends on pulleys The posts areprovided near their upper ends with buffers 34, which are constructed ofrubber or other suitable material and serve as cushions and preventshocks in opening the gates. The platform is prevented from rising toohigh by cleats 35, arranged to engage the ends of the platform, and itis designed to have the rails of the platform but a slight distanceabove the adjacent rails, so that there will be but small shocks to atrain passing over the plat form.

It will be seen that the railroad-gate is sim- IOC ple and comparativelyinexpensive in construction and is adapted to be readily opened by anapproaching train, and that it will quickly close after a train haspassed. The end bars of the gates are provided near their lower endswith recessed blocks 36, which are vertically and horizontally disposedand adapted to interlock and prevent the gates being forced apart. Vhenit is desired to open the gates and there is not sufficient weight onthe platform, the gates can be readily pushed back by hand.

Vhat I claim is- 1. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the platform,the springs supporting the platform, the gate-frame` the gate sliding inthe frame, the bell-crank levers fulcrumed on the gate-frame and havingtheir upper ends connected with the gates, and the levers 14, arrangedbeneath the platform and adapted to be depressed by the same andconnected with the lower ends of the bell-crank levers, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the platform provided withpresser-feet I3, the springs supporting the platform, the gateframe, thesliding gates, the bell-crank levers fulcrumed on the gate-frame andextending along the same, the levers let, arranged beneath the platformand adapted to be engaged by the presser-feet 13 and connected to thelower ends of the bell-crank levers, and the shifting-levers havingtheir lower ends fulcrumed on the gate-frame and their upper endsconnected with the gates and connected intermediate their ends with thebell-crank levers, substantially as described.

3. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the platform, the bowedsprings centrally secured to the platform and supporting the same, thecross-pieces l0, provided with recesses to receive the ends of thesprings, the cleats 35, engaging the ends of the platform, thegate-frame, the sliding gates, and the levers 14, arranged beneath theplatform and adapted to be depressed by the same and connected with thesliding gates, substantially as described.

4. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the platform, the gate-framecomprising the posts provided with openings, the top piece connectingthe upper ends of the posts and provided with a depending hanger, theguiderod supported by the hanger and having its ends secured to theposts, the gates consisting of the end bars having their upper endsarranged on the guide-rod and the horizontal rods secured to the endbars and arranged in the openings of the posts, and the levers 14,arranged beneath the platform and adapted to be depressed by the sameand connected with the sliding gates, substantially as described.

5. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the gateframe,the slidinggates, the arms eX- tending from the gate-frame, the bell-crank leversfulcrumed on the gate-frame, and the shifting-levers having their lowerends fulcrumed on the arms and their upper endsy connected to the gatesand connected intermediate their ends with the bell-crank levers,substantially as described.

6. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the gate-frame, the slidinggate,the laterallyextending arms projecting from the gateframe, thebell-crank levers fulcrumed on the gate-frame, the shifting-leversfulcrumved on the arms and connected with the bell-crank levers and withthe gates, and the springs secured to the gate-frame and to thebell-crank levers, substantially as described.

7. In a railroad-gate, the combination of the frame, the sliding gate,the arms extending laterally from the frame, the shifting-le-` versfulcrumed on the arm and connected with the gates and with thebell-crank levers, the pulleys 33, arranged on the frame, and thesprings passing over the pulleys and having their upper ends secured tothe frame and their lower ends attached to bell-crank levers,substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in presence ot' two witnesses.

EDWARD LINCOLN CROCKER.

Witnesses:

L. C. CRooKER, W. J. CROCKER.

